Coffee and Exorcism
by steampunkgirl
Summary: Iris could see auras ever since she was born. What happens when the Vatican sends a certain Headmaster to investigate with a stoway brother? T for future themes.
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys, this is the first Fanfic I have ever written, so if I'm doing something wrong, feel free to tell me.

Oh, and I promise that the second chapter will be way longer an twice as interesting.

All credits goes to They're respective owners.

Iris hated crowds. Well, hate wasn't really the right way to put it. She feared them. It wasn't as if she didn't like it outside or anything. she just didn't feel adequit around people,(and they weren't exactly comfortable around her either). So I'm sure you could imagine the magnetude of her displeasure when she awoke to an empty coffee cup.

As soon as her unshod feet hit the cold wood floor, Iris Amberbroom had an uneasy feeling. It started in the pit of her stomach, and quickly rose to her upper most part of her hair (which, on account of her untamable bed head, was a pretty long way to travel). She padded uneasily to her kitchen, making a mental checklist of the things she would do that morning as she went. 'Okay', she thought, 'First, i need to make coffee. Then I'll brush my teeth and get dressed.' She blew a renegade piece of ivy green hair out of her eye and sighed.' Maybe I'll skip brushing my hair today'. She fumbled blearily for the silver knob of her pantry door and yanked the door open, impatient for her morning fix.

There, in the spot where the box of instant coffee had been, was open air. She groaned. How had she not foreseen this? Usually she just ordered more supplies when she noticed the amount of whatever she needed was depleting. Except for today. The feeling of unease grew into one of panic as she flung things aside, searching for even a single dreg of instant coffee .None was to be seen. "Okay" she murmured, "It's going to be fine".

She sat down and tried to reason with herself. 'Going without coffee is not an option', she thought. Iris suddenly wished she had someone to send for food. It was difficult having to inspect all of her supplies, estimating what the best time to order more would be and how many she needed. If only she wasn't able to-no, she thought .Don't think about that right now .'I know' her mind chimed, 'I'll flip a coin .'Heads I stay here and hold off on coffee for a couple of days, and Tails...I go outside to get my coffee myself'. She cringed at that second thought, but both of her options were pretty bad.

She got up and rushed to her purse, where she retrieved a penny which clutching it with white knuckles .So, with a shaky whisper of "Don't fail me now", she flicked the coin into the air. It rolled into the living room, Iris trailing it eagerly, and landed on it's side .Tails. She swore visciously and kicked the penny. This day was progressing into a nightmare.

She sighed and tried to hold back the coming hysteria. 'I have to do this', she thought, and lifted her pointed chin in defiance of her fear.' I can't shut myself away from humanity forever'. And with that thought, she rushed off to get dressed, determined to leave before she could change her mind. She had no idea how one simple trip could change her life.

Mephesto Pheles was a patient man. He always stopped at stop signs and calmly dealt with his occasionally misbehaving students. However, that can quickly change when sweets are involved. They were part of the reason of why he was so patient, because they took the edge off of things. So when he was informed of his new mission in New York City from the Vatican he shook his head in annoyance. "Why is the Vatican always sending me places with terrible candy?" He exclaimed.

He had been to America several times before, and each time was terrible. The food was terrible and the people were rude. Not to mention the fashion. The Amercans had no culture! He rolled his eyes in disgust, pulling at the tall swirl of yellow hair at the top of his head with a purple gloved hand. If it wasn't for my exile in Gehenna, I'd-"brother, what's that?"

Mephesto didn't have to look up to know that his younger brother was somehow hanging by his knees from the ceiling, a green lollipop hanging out of his mouth .Like the candy, his hair was also a toxic shade of green, that shaded to yellow at the top of the giant spike of hair on his head."Hello, Amaimon. Nice of you to join me." Amaimon paused. "umm, yeah, I know, but what's that paper thing?'' Mephesto his yellow eyed little brother could be such an annoyance. "That paper 'thing' would be the specifications for my new mission in New York city. It says I have to investigate the case of one one Iris AmberBroom."

How'd you guys like it? Feel free to review!


	2. Chapter 2

Hey guys, already back with chapter two! the last chapter I uploaded had e few words cut out of it (on the last paragraph it was supposed to say 'Mephesto sighed. His yellow-eyed little brother could be so annoying' or somthig like that). Hopefully that won't happen with this chapter. Anyway, read and review!

Iris was slapped by a wall of niose. She couldn't help the whimper that came from her when a group of children ran past, barely resisting the urge to scurry back behind her to the safe confines behind her locked door. Instead, she pulled her hat low , braced herself against the biting winter air, and trudged on.

All around her she could see the black flea-like specks she had come to recognise as auras, floating mildly around some and swarming hungrily around others. She had no idea why they did this. Some of the people that they swarmed were inhuman and disfigured looking, with talons and horns or wings and hooves. Some drooled at her when she walked by, the way someone would look at a Thanks Giving turkey.

She scurried along, seeing even the normal people cast unwavering glances at her, even when she stared back. She felt like a tug boat abandoned in a sea of oil tankers .She was so caught up in her feeling of newfound hopelessness that after a few minutes of flailing about among the crowd, Iris suddenly stopped recognising her surroundings.

Rushing around in a panic, Iris discovered that she was lost. For the second time that day she had to shove down that ever present feeling of hysteria and reason with herself. Iris quickly concluded that she should head to the nearest store to ask for directions. She began to frantically look around her for a suitable seeming place, and there, right next to her, in all It's caffinated glory, was a coffee shop.

Mephesto took his time packing, relishing his last moments in his beloved Japan before he had to depart to America. Amaimon, perched on the chair across from him was far from serene. "Brother!" he exclaimed "I want to come with you to America!"This caused Mephesto to frown. He had been over this with his obstinant younger sybling several times that day. "Amaimon, for the last time, no, you cannot." Amaimon pouted." But why not?" he whined, flopping about on the plush armchair. "This place is booorrriinng" he threw his black gloved arms into the air dramatically. His older brother began to scratch at his go tee in annoyance."Okay, I'm going to itemize this in a way even you might understand. First, this is Vatican buisness, so I cannot be seen with you." He held up his first finger."Second" he began flicking up his second finger "This mission is an investigation and you are completely conspicious." By the time his third finger came up, Amaimon looked entirely wounded "Third. You get much too exited whenever you go to a new place. I can't have you killing random Americans."

Amaimon glared silently at his older brother. 'He thinks I can't be trusted' he thought. 'I'll show him'. By the time Amaimon had concocted his plan, Mephesto was finished packing. He picked up his pink cupcake shaped suitcase (Amaimon would sometimes try to eat it, so he didn't use it often) and looked at his sulky brother."Alright" he said "I shall only be gone for a few days. Keep out of trouble or I will eat all of your sweets." Amaimon nodded sullenly. "Oh and Amaimon" He tossed his brother a cookie, seemingly produced out if nowhere. "Try not to look so glum. " And with a final exclamation of "Eins, Zwie, Drie~" he disapeared in an exlosion of pink smoke and stars.

'Alright' thought Amaimon, shoving the cookie happily in his mouth and looking down at the Vatican assignment his brother had carelessly flung on the floor. On the page he had left it open to was a picture of a girl. A girl with frosty green hair. 'Time to get to work.'

Iris stumbled disbelievingly into the welcoming doors of the cafe. The warmth of the threshold embraced Iris like a warm hug, filling her with the scent of coffee beans. 'I can't believe my luck' she thought as she shuffled torwards the counter. Though her feeling of acompleshment quickly dissolved into one of fear. The guy manning it was covered in swarms of those flea-like aura creatures and had dull charcoal colored horns that peaked from his red hair, with fingers covered with fleshy grey webbing. When he smiled at her, oversized cainines jutted from his mouth.

"May I take your order?" He rasped. His voice sounded like a frog's croak. "Um...y-yes" Iris stammered."I'll have a chai latte". "Coming right up" he murmured. then went to the back to get the ingreidients , Iris sank down into the chair farthest from where everyone was sitting, wedged in a corner between the left wall and the door .'Crap', she thought, 'I forgot to buy the instant-' her mind quickly cut her off at the sight of a man strolling through the doorway.

He was possibly the strangest person she had ever seen. His purple hair was half conceiled by an enormous white top ha , it's bottom section interrupted by a band of pink and purple that closely resembled a thick licorice whip. His eyes were a deep shade of emerald, and his neatly trimmed go tee pointed down to a pink ascot, which tucked into his neat white suit and speckled with white polka-dots. He wore gloves the shade of lavender, and tights striped with dark and light pink, which disappeared into brown calf high boots, the toes of which wer cureld at a ridiculas angle . The strangest thing about him, though, was the fact that no one seemed to see him. He glided straight through the crowded coffee shop and seemed to pass through people and chairs as he went. When he saw her staring, he gave her a devilish smile and tipped his hat.

By that time the clerk had finished making her latte, and before she could so much as think about grabbing it, the strange man snatched it from the counter and strolled leisurely back through the door, flashing her another smirk as he did so. This one reveiled pointed teeth. Forgetting about the instant coffee, Iris rushed out of the coffee shop to follow him. If she had not been so binded by her anger, she might have noticed the clerk skulking closely behind her. She also might have noticed that all of the aura creatures were swarming around them, anticipating a fight.

Aahhh, another chapter finished. Be sure to R'n R!


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys, sorry it's been a while since my last update, I've been studying for my finals. Anyway, please enjoy this chapter.

Amaimon smiled as he steered Behemoth around another skyscraper. He had been avoiding oncoming buildings for the better part of an hour. 'My brother will be so happy', he thought. Amaimon knew that deviating from his brother's orders was a good choice the moment he saw that girl's picture, though he still felt bad about disobeying him. He could see things his brother couldn't in people, things that made people stand out. This girl was different, and he knew what the Vatican did with those who were different.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by a sudden change in his brother's movements. His older sybling was walking into a cafe, the excitement of the hunt wafting off him like a flower's nectar. Amaimon frowned when he extended his senses further. His brother was not the only demon there. There was the obvious low pulse of a low-level demon, and something else. He couldn't really describe the other thing, but he could tell it was a well conceiled kind of power, a haunting presence that wasn't quite aware of itself. SHE was there. Amaimon smiled in success, popping a red lollipop into his fanged mouth. Now he just needed to wait until he and his brother could talk unenterupted. Speak of the devil. Amaimon swiftly hid behind the dingy bricks of the coffee shop. He didn't hide to quickly to miss seeing his older sybling striding through the crowd with a cup of coffee clutched in his hands, or the green- haired figure struggling after him, the underling following closely behind. Giggling with excitement, the Earth King joined the procession.

Iris KNEW that following that man was madness. It was just obvious by the way he walked, not so fast that'd she get left behind, but not so slow that'd she catch up. Needless to say, he wanted to be followed. But still she persisted in her ever continuing excursion for some simple coffee. At least, that's what she told herself. The truth of the matter was that she was just bored. After living in her self induced exile for so long, she needed some adventure. So of course she was following that strange man into god-knew-where. Boredome is a strong thing.

She was yanked from her reverie by the man's sharp turn to the right. She was led into an alley, cast pitch black by the overcast January sky. Iris had always possessed abnormally good night vision, (she had always credited that to her ability to see auras), so her eyes had no problem mapping out the dank passage way. She saw the man in front of her gazing about the ally way, nodding when he seemed satisfied with the stark location. His immpecable white suit looked ridiculesly out of place in the dingy darkness of the alley. He turned towards her.

When she saw him then, up close, her courage wavered. He was a truly striking figure. His emerald eyes seemed to scan every inch of her, as if he were evaluating her worth. When he seemed to have decided upon her expense, he dropped into a flourishing bow, and said, " My name is Mephesto Pheles. I am here on behalf of the Vatican to investigate your abilities." He took a sip of Iris' latte and made a sour face. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Amberbroom~" Iris stood aghast on the opposite side of the ally. The Vatican? What was he talking about? "Look" she stammered " I don't know what you want, but you obviously have the wrong-" His eyes were staring over my shoulder, a clap cutting me off. "Ah!" he exclaimed "It seems our guest has arrived~" Iris twisted around to see over her shoulder and groaned.

The thing from the coffee shop was there, leaning in the ally way entrance. It's red hair contrasted dramatically with the dank darkness of the alley, which matched perfectly with the dusky pair of horns attop the thing's head. When it saw Iris staring it smiled and waved jovialy, then sobered when it adressed Mephesto. "My prince" he greeted with a mocking bow. "What would one of Gehenna's fallen be doing here, might I inquire?" Before Mephesto could answer, he looked at Iris and chuckled. "Oooh I see" he said " you're here for the girl. I knew someone would come for her eventually." Iris turned to look at Mephesto. "What's he talking about?" He waved her away impatiently. "I'll explain everything once you're safe." Mephesto turned his attention back to the thing slouching in the alleyway. "I see you've been keeping watch over her. Tell me, are you under orders to make sure no one takes her?"

The thing's smile grew even wider (though not quite as wide as Mephesto's), and he moved away from the wall, fully entering the ally. Wedged in that tiny space, Iris started to feel something pulsating from the bodies of the two inhumans, a feeling that caused something deep within her to stir. Something deep and powerful. For the first time in that dirty space she noticed that not all of the darkness came from the alleyway it's self, but from all of the aura creatures swarming the crevices of the alley, buzzing in exited glee. ' This is not good' Iris thought, beggining to regret her choice of coming here. As she contemplated the mood of the strange flea- like creatures and the rationality of her choice in comming here, she noticed that the red haired thing was walking past her, towards Mephesto. When there was about five feet of space between the two, he stopped. "You have no idea what he would do to me if I let her go with you" he was saying " I can't let her leave." Mephesto's eyes had a hungry gleam to them when he said "well, what a coincidence! The Vatican would most likely frown on me failing to complete such a simple mission, so I also cannot be without miss Amberbroom" his smile grew feral and he growled "I guess we'll just have to kill each other~"

The red haired thing took a step backward. "I'm sorry, but I'm sure that even the girl can see the obvious difference in our power." he grabbed her arm "I think I'll just take her and-" He cut himself off when yet another figure appeared in the alleyway entrance.

It appeared to be a boy, no older than eighteen, garbed in a ragged black trench coat and a yellow sweater, the buttons of which were shaped like skulls. He had green hair that, like Mephesto's, shaded to a bright yellow and ended at a point. He did not bother conceiling his pointed ears. Beside him stood the strangest beast Iris had ever seen, a round, green creature with a buolbus nose and huge eyes, with chain at It's neck that was held in the boy's right hand. In his other hand, he clutched a skull shaped whistle. Iris used this distraction to yank away from the hooved creature and try to run out of the alley. But before she could escape, the boy stuck out a foot to trip her and blew hard on the whistle.

Iris screamed in horror and agony as violent yellow flames cascaded from every inch of her body, causing her to crash to the ground and thrash violently. The uneasy thing inside of her was now writhing, shooting out of her in all directions as if it was making angry haste to be freed of It's vessel. Everything was bathed in a toxic yellow hue, something that would have blinded most people. But the things in the alleyway were not most people. They all went in opposite directions, the horned thing hurrying out of the alleyway, Mephesto striding towards Iris. Mephesto seemed completely unscathed as he strolled through the scorching yellow blaze, though he did seem plenty surprised. The boy just stood there looking unimpressed at her thrashing.

Through a veil of pain and confusion, Iris could feel herself being scooped up and shuffled quickly towards the end of the alleyway. 'Hey that's funny' she thought deleriously ' I had no idea there was a door there...' That was the last thing Iris thought before she passed out cold.

So how'd you guys like the chapter? Don't be afraid let me know what you think.


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys, back with another chapter. I think I'm having a bit too much fun writing this lol :D. Anyways, you guys enjoy, and make sure to R and R.

Iris Amberbroom immeadiatly regretted regaining consciousness. The first thing that hit her was a formidable head ache, which was followed by a maddeningly sore body. 'It must have been a dream' she thought. 'Thank god'. But as her blurry vision cleared, she soon realised that the day's events had been very mutch real. She looked around and found that the pink, plush couch had not been her bed, the equally pink and plush office not her room. She gasped and sat bolt upright, biting her tung as she did so. Her mouth filled with blood. She tried to rise, and saw something loomig over her shoulder. She realeased another gasp when she realised that the thing was connected to her. I was her _tail_, the same ivy green as her hair, It's curled end tipped with the earthen brown of her eyes. "It's okay" she tried to soothe herself "Your probably just dreaming still. You'll wake up soon, and everything will be normal." That calmed her slightly.

Having sucessfully chased away her growing feeling of panic, Iris took the place in in greater detail. She had been covered by a lilac comforter that was covered with images of cupcakes, tiny stitches lining the edges. There was a white fireplace to the right of the couch, It's mantle covered with toys. At the end of the room, to the left, was an enormous cherry wood desk. Atop the desk was a strange looking fern, a computer, and even more toys. Iris also noticed the dainty white mineature schnausure nestled cozily between her and the side of the couch. Having been disturbed by all of Iris's shuffling, the tiny dog sat up and sighed contentedly, blinking with bleary eyes. When it saw Iris it wagged It's tail and licked her hand. Iris smiled and scratched the dog between It's ears and said "You seem pretty realistic for a dream". The dog cocked it's head to the side. "My dear, I'm afraid that this is not a dream."

Iris gasped and sprang from the couch, her eyes wide with surprise. "Y-you spoke!" she exclaimed. Upon further reflection, she realised that it was probably unreasonable to react like that, since she already acknowledged that she was dreaming. If the dog was affected in any way, he didn't show it. "Yes, yes, I'm very much aware that I can speak. You humans always seem so surprised." Iris sat down rigidly in the chair across from him and asked "So this isn't a dream?"

Before the dog could answer, a boy with green hair barged into the room. "Is she awake yet?" The small canine suddenly growled and disappeared in a fog of pink smoke and stars. "Amiamon!" exclaimed the newly formed Mephesto Pheles, getting up and strutting towards the intruder. "I specifically told you to stay in your room!" Amaimon stared intently at his shoes. "I'm sorry brother! I just wanted to see if that girl was-" he stopped when he saw her starring, his apologetic face morphing into one of curiosity. "So she _is_ awake! Hey, do you know what you ar-" he stopped again, but this time it was because of his brother. Mephesto was pulling him out of the room by his pointed ear. "But brother, I just wanted to see if that girl was awa-" Iris couldn't hear anymore on account of how far away from the door they had drifted. She thought she heard the occasional yelp. Shortly after that episode, A slightly flustered Mephesto appeared in the doorway.

"Sorry about that, my lovable younger brother gets very excited sometimes. Now, where was I?" He didn't allow her anytime to answer and sat down on the arm of the couched, crossing his legs loftily. "Ah, yes! Now I rember. Why, no, this is not a dream. I'm just as real as your ears, tail, and teeth. Which, by the way, you will probably need to hide from now on." He gestured at a small ornate mirror on the wall next to what she assumed was his desk. "Go on, take a look."

Iris grabbed her tail and stroked it. It seemed to be super sensitive and very, very real. Then she got up and shuffled towards the mirror. She saw her ivy green hair and dark earthen eyes, and then the things that weren't her's. Short pointed ears that made her gasp, and when her mouth parted, sharp, thick cainines. And behind lingering behind her was a green tail, it's curled tip the shade of her eyes. Distghtraut, she turned towards Mephesto. "What the hell's happening with me? With all of this!" She gestured wildly to the whole room.

Mephesto sighed theatrically and patted the seat beside him. "Come on. You'll probably need to sit down for this." Iris ignored his unspoken suggestion and sat back down in the chair across from him, causing the eccintrically dressed man to pout. "I think I'm going to be frank about this" he began "You are kin to a very powerful demon. Thanks to Amaimon, you're no longer human. People and fellow demons all over will seek you out for various reasons, mostly because of your abilities, which are prolonged life, intensified senses, super strength, and the power to control flames. Needless to say, you are very powerful." Iris suddenly grew very pale. 'It all makes sense' she thought. No matter how much she didn't want to admit it, it was the only thing that made sense. He wasn't lying. Saving her the agony of responding, he went on. "The Vatican has received intelligence that you're able to see demons, so they sent me to investigate and possibly retrieve you. However, seeing as how the Vatican's purpose is to exterminate demons, it's now quite obvious that you will not end up in they're hands." She nodded measuredly, slowly coming to terms with her heritage. Then she paused, a sudden thought occuring to her. "Mephesto, why haven't my powers appeared until now?" He nodded sagely, as if he had expected that question. "Did you see that whistle Amaimon had?" she nodded. "It's called a Dante's Pfiff, or Demon Whistle. When it is blown, it realeases a hidden demon's conceiled powers. It's a good thing my dear brother did that, too, otherwise the Vatican would have exicuted you by now~" Iris nodded thoughtfully, taking it all in. She was still very uncertain about her future, but then she at least knew what she was. "Mephesto" she began "What will I do now? I obviously can't go back, and I shouln't go anywhere involving the Vatican."

Mephesto chuckled. "Why, you'll go to school of course~ The way I see it is that you really have no other choice but to come to my school and become an luckily enough, you happen to be sitting in the world's only school for Exorcists." Iris was taken aback again. "Exorcist?" What she really wanted to know was how someone like him became a headmaster, but she figured that knowing what an exorcist was would be more important. "Yes~ An Exorcist is someone who fights demons. If you were to become one, you would look way less suspicious~ In fact, Satan's son himself is currently training to become Paladin~" She considered this. Iris didn't really want to fight demons, but it sounded better than being exicuted by the Vatican or aprehended by the demons. Plus, how hard could it be? "Alright" she said "I'll do it." Mephesto smiled and clapped, hopping up from his perch. "Excelent~" he exclaimed.

He strode out of the room, Iris trailing him obediently. He led her into a long and elegant hallway, something that wouldn't look out of place in a castle. When he turned and saw her staring, he smirked. "I see you are admiring my lovely tastes." She flushed. "I was doing nothing of the sort" said Iris haughtily. Then she sobered. "I was just reflecting on how different this place is from my old school." He turned back around. "Yes, well, you will find things in Japan to be very different from things in America~" Iris stopped walking. "_Japan_? I'm in _Japan_?" Mephesto didn't seem to notice that she had stopped, because he kept walking. Not wanting to get left alone, she hurried to resume her spot behind him."Obviously~ look out the window." Iris walked over to the clear floor-to-wall window and gasped.

The campus was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen! The numerous Sakura trees littered the ground with delicate pink petals, some collecting in the huge ornate fountain in the center. Students milled about everywhere, looking like ants from Iris's airborn view. How come schools in America didn't look like that?

Mephesto had already started moving again, and she had to race to catch up. She was not going to indulge him with a compliment, even if he did have immpecable taste. Suddenly he stopped, causing Iris to bump into him. "Here it is! Room 306." He reached out gingerly and unlocked the door, pulling it open. Iris looked around the hall and discovered that they were back were they started, the door to Mephesto's office gaping open. Her room was directly across from it. She turned to Mephesto. "I don't need a baby sitter." He chuckled. "Of course you do! You're a danger to yourself and others, being a demon and all." Damn him for making sense! Forgetting about her newly appointed guardian, she turned to observe the room. It was a small, gray room, It's only furnishings a bunk bed and an old dresser. It wasn't extravagant, but it seemed cozy enough.

Mephesto handed her the key, a pamplet, and a bundle of clothes, all seemingly out of thin air. Pointing to the pamplet, he said "This lists the regular high school schedual, and the Exorcist cram school schedual." His finger shifted to the neatly folded clothes."That is your new True Cross school uniform, which you will only wear on school days." Then his finger moved to point at her. "You will hide your tail, and explain your ears and teeth the best you can. You will never_ ever_ use flames in front of anyone, even if they are in danger. Do you understand?" Iris nodded solemly and he clapped. "Good~ Make sure you make sure that you make it to freshmen orentation, where I will meet you afterwards. Oh, and if Amaimon starts harassing you, make sure to tell me." Iris nodded again, and thanked him. "Think nothing of it~ I was just generiously helping a girl in need."

Before he could turn to leave Iris asked hesitantly "A- Are you a demon too? My flames didn't burn you, and your ears and teeth are pointed like mine." He simply turned with laugh and called out "I'll meet you at my office after orientation. Don't be late." Then he dissapeared behind the closed door of his office.

Iris shut the dorm's door and calapsed onto the bed. This was proving to be a long day.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey guys, back from my overly long haitus! Sorry about that, my family and I have been preping for horse shows all summer, so I didn't have time to write. But now I'm back, so sit back and enjoy the chapter!

The overly crowded assembly hall stifled Iris's senses, completely preventing coherent thought. She tugged at her grey skirt nervously and tried not get trampled in a melee of uniforms. The freshman were all sitting in the middle row of wooden benches, and it took Iris a solid five minutes to fight her way through the river of rowdy students.

When she finally arrived, she took a seat on the right end of the row. The green headed girl finally felt safe enough to observe he surroundings and immeadietly fell into a now familiar sense of awe. The domed ceiling curved regally upright, supported by strong chestnut beams. The stage was a massive shining wooden rectangle framed by deep crimson curtains that matched the upholstry on the cushy benches. She would have continued gawking like that for several more minutes if it wasn't for her neighbor.

He was staring at her with unblinking blue eyes, his fanged mouth parted in surprise. Poking through his raven hair were a pair of familiar looking ears. Mephisto had been busy. "You-" He stuttered "Your-" Thankfully, a tall, studious looking boy stepped up to the podium, giving Iris a much needed distraction. She turned to the stuttering boy beside her. "Shhh, he's starting." She didn't really need to tell him, because he nearly jumped out of his seat when his eyes caught the black haired boy with the glasses, his mouth gaping so wide he could catch flies. Apparently he knew that kid. She quickly shook off her thoughts and began to gather her wits about her as the representative began a generic 'new chapter' sort of speech.

_Okay,_ she thought, _it appears I'm not the only half demon at this school. That's a good thing...right?_ Hell, for all Iris knew, they could've been related! She had never had any syblings that she knew of, and there was no one in her family left to tell her if she did. She begrudgingly decided to peek over her shoulder at the boy to find a resemblance, and was relieved to see that they looked nowhere _near_ alike. The only similarities she could spot were their ears and teeth, Other than that, where she was all wispy haired and sharply curved, he was blunt and substancial. He did seem to be, like her, deep in contemplation, though he seemed to be mourning in some untangable memory, his eyes docked on the overachieving boy at the podium. He most likely wouldn't try to talk to her now.

She spent the rest of the assembly thinking about Mephisto. To a sensable person he probably would seem far from trust worthy. And yet Iris felt so comfortable around him! Never in her life had she wanted to have a conversation with another person before, so why now? Why him? He was annoying, condescending, and infuriating, but for some reason she kind of liked the clownish man. Or rather, clownish _demon._ Iris knew he was a demon the moment she laid eyes on him, and judging by his reaction when she asked him, he knew she wasn't ignorant to that piece of information. The only question was, what did it mean? He was running a school for _exorcists_, exorcists who _kill _demons! He had a plan, that much she knew. He was like chess player, always three perfectly measured steps ahead, carefully collected and knowing.

She was pulled out of her reverie by a sudden blast of clapping and shuffling. Students were eagerly pileing out of their seats, happy to finally be heading home after the boring speech. After the majority of the kids had vacated the assembly hall, Iris and the half demon boy rose from their bench and faced each other. His eyes swam over her, still wide from disbelief. Iris cleared her throat. The silence in the room was deafening, and she felt her face grow hot from embaressment. "I'm assuming that you're going to see the headmaster too?" The boy nodded. The two wordlessly filed out of their row and started out the now emptied assembly hall, and into the hushed corridore.

They didn't speak until they were halfway through the long plush hallway, when it was the boy's turn to clear his throat. When he spoke, his voice was on the ragged side, and he sounded like he hadn't been talking a lot recently. "What's your name?" Iris didn't really know why that was relevant, by she introduced herself anyway. "Iris Amberbroom. You?" The boy answered "Rin Okumura." Okumura... Okumura... where had she heard that name before? "Ah, I remember now! You're the freshman representative's brother, aren't you?" He nodded soberly. "Yeah. we're twins." Iris must have looked disbelieving, because he said "we're not identacle. You don't have to look so surprised." She hurried to nullify her earlier statement, so as not to offend the sulking boy. "Oh I wasn't surprised or anything" she said hurriedly "It's just that... well... he didn't seem to... you know." Iris gestured at her ears and Rin laughed humorlessly. "I guess I got the short end of the stick on that one. His body was too weak in the womb, so the damn thing chose me." Iris looked down quickly. "I'm sorry". He shrugged.

When her head rose she found that they had arrived to the door connecting to the outside. Rin pushed the door open and Iris trailed him in silence. The courtyard was as beautiful as the rest of the campus, covered in sakura trees and serene fountains. She spied a lamp post, atop of which the head master was perched, his legs crossed in a relaxed position.

When he saw them, he hopped lithely from the post, his lips curved in his usual expression of deviousness. "Well if it isn't my two favorite to visit your adored head master?" Rin rolled his eyes. "You were the one that told us to come here."He deadpanned. Mephisto seemed to be unaffected by that comment and went on, his demeanor markedly more serious than it had been ten seconds ago. "I only have one question, and one question alone for you two. Do you want to become excorcists? To forsake your damnable blood and make names for yourselves on this winding path?" Rin and Iris exchanged solem glances and echoed each other's utterences of "Yes." Mephisto clapped and his mood imediatly brightened. "Excelent~ now I see you two have already hidden your tails, and your ears and teeth can be easily explained. Now, if you will both just follow me, I will show you to your classes."

And with that the head master jumped off of what Iris now assumed was a hill. Rin, apparently did not come to the same conclusion, because he shouted when the top hat disappeared behind the hill. They both scrambled off the hill (Rin peeking over the edge to make sure they weren't about to follow the psycho clown off a cliff). When they were all together, Mephesto exclaimed "Eins, Zwie, Drie~" and disappeared into a puff of white star and heart studded cloud, replaced by a scruffy white dog. Iris, having already seen this trick, looked over her shoulder to observe Rin's reaction. She was thoroughly sure he peed his pants. "Wha- what the hell?" Mephisto didn't seem to care for Rin's reaction, because when the pair looked up, his dog form was turned around staring at them patiently, patience morphing into a quiet sort of amusement when his gaze turned to Rin. "Come now, we don't have all night." Iris sauntered over to the little dog and also stared at Rin. He finally emitted a defeated sigh ant joined the small group.

Mephisto produced a primitive looking key from his coat and nudged it over to Iris. "With this you can open any door with this key and will always end up in the exorcist cramschool. The cramschool starts tonight, so just try it out on the door in front of you." Iris did as she was told and opened the rusty door into the most beautiful room she had ever seen.

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